Announcement of Opportunity for the Operation of the 2.1m and Coudé Feed Telescopes at Kitt Peak National Observatory Revised 23 June 2014

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1 Announcement of Opportunity for the Operation of the 2.1m and Coudé Feed Telescopes at Kitt Peak National Observatory Revised 23 June 2014 Following a review process (the Portfolio Review) and due to financial pressures, the National Science Foundation (NSF) has determined that it can no longer provide operational support for the 2.1m telescope at Kitt Peak National Observatory (KPNO) after 30 September Therefore, NSF and the National Optical Astronomy Observatory (NOAO) are accepting proposals from parties interested in operating the KPNO 2.1m and associated Coudé Feed telescopes. In accordance with the existing master lease agreement between the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the Tohono O odham nation, the facilities are expected to be used for astronomical study and research and related scientific and educational purposes. Interested parties are encouraged to submit a Letter of Intent by August 1, 2014 to the Associate Director for KPNO, Dr. Lori Allen (lallen@noao.edu). Letters should be as substantive as possible in addressing the selection factors in the announcement; in stating the fraction of time needed, if less than 100%, in expressing any need for a broker to put together a consortium, and in stating how solid the prospects are for a full proposal. Interested parties are strongly encouraged to discuss their interests with Dr. Allen before submitting a letter or a proposal. Proposals are due by midnight EDT October 1, 2014 and should also be submitted to Dr. Allen. A decision on the proposals will be made in November.

2 As the second major telescope to be constructed on Kitt Peak, the 2.1m saw first light in 1964 and has since been in continual operation by KPNO. The history of the telescope includes many important discoveries in astrophysics such as the Lyman-alpha forest, the first gravitational lens, the first pulsating white dwarf, and the first comprehensive study of the binary frequency of solar type stars. The 2.1m is currently outfitted with a direct imaging CCD camera and is in nightly operation. The Coudé Spectrograph in the 2.1m building is operable only with the Coudé Feed telescope, which is therefore included in this announcement of opportunity. Proposals to operate one or both of the facilities are invited from institutions or consortia that are prepared to assume full responsibility technical, scientific, and financial. Any proposed use of this telescope must be broadly consistent with the research and education missions of NSF and NOAO. Proposals with innovative educational and public outreach concepts are particularly encouraged. The operating organization would continue to permit public access and/or guided tours to enter the existing public observation gallery in the 2.1m during the daytime, subject to compatibility with the organization's operations activities. Furthermore, if compatible with instrumentation and operations, NOAO wishes to retain some telescope access for community users, with the details to be negotiated. NSF would expect to retain title to the facilities under a new operating organization. However, transfer of title is a possibility subject to further discussion. Provision of the telescopes and their current instrumentation would be the extent of NOAO s contribution. Continued operation and maintenance of all items would be the responsibility of the proposer. The operating organization would be responsible for operating and maintaining the building/dome and telescope, as well as maintaining all instruments, data acquisition systems and software. The operating organization may decommission, upgrade or replace existing instrumentation; it may also upgrade or otherwise modify the telescope, control systems and building/dome in ways that are consistent with the proposed use of the telescope, subject to NSF approval. The amounts in Appendix A are rough estimates, in FY13 dollars, of the cost experienced to operate and maintain the telescope, control systems, and building/dome. The organization would be responsible for providing all staff as appropriate for their proposed operation, maintenance and use of the telescope facility, including modifications and upgrades. Proposals should cover operation of the 2.1m telescope and if desired, the Coudé telescope for an initial 3-year period, beginning as early as Semester 2014B. Potential proposers with questions and comments are encouraged to contact Lori Allen. Potential proposers with needs for less than full time use of the telescope(s) are encouraged to coordinate with Lori Allen in the event that a consortium of partial users can be assembled. Factors to be considered in the proposal evaluation are: (not in priority order) 1) Quality and significance of the proposed scientific programs. 2) Educational impact of the proposed use. 3) Plans for additional instrumentation for the telescopes. 4) Plans for education and public outreach. 5) Technical and financial resources available to ensure that the proposed program will be implemented successfully. 6) Benefit to the collective operations and the scientific and educational environment of KPNO. Description of the Facilities The KPNO 2.1m telescope is an equatorially mounted, Cassegrain focus telescope. It has a slumped, Pyrex primary mirror, one of the first of its kind. Two top ends, with focal ratios of f/7.6 and f/15, are provided. The f/15 secondary is controllable in both axes, with a full range of motion of 300 arcsec and a 60 arcsec chop amplitude at a frequency of 20 Hz. The telescope is equipped with a rotator and guider. The dome tracks the telescope motion. In recent years the telescope has deployed both optical and IR spectrographs (GoldCam, Phoenix and Flamingos), and imagers (CFIM and Flamingos) as well as visitor instruments. It is currently equipped with an optical imager (CFIM+STA3). Since 1995, the 2.1m telescope has been an observer-operated facility. Technical information on the 2.1m telescope is provided in Appendix B. 2

3 The Coudé telescope is fed by a 1.5m alt-az mounted flat mirror. The facility includes a spectrograph, two CCD cameras and a guider, all contained within the 2.1m building. The facility is still operable and is used a few times per semester, though it has not been updated in several years. Although the Coudé telescope is included in this opportunity, it is not required that the selected tenant utilize it. See Appendix C for additional technical information. Specifications, Operations, and Cost Estimates The following is intended to provide those organizations interested in operating the KPNO 2.1-m telescope with information on what to expect as a tenant facility, an estimate of probable start up and full time operations costs, and an overview of the telescope specifications. Estimated operating costs are broken down into more detail in Appendix A. Although costs would depend on the specific operation model, a few basic principles apply: 1) The operating organization would be considered a Kitt Peak tenant. Tenant status requires that a sublease for the telescope site be negotiated between the organization and the NSF. In addition, the operating organization would be required to sign an agreement with Association of Universities for Research in Astronomy (AURA), the NOAO managing organization, or its successor covering responsibilities of the tenant and the basic services provided by AURA/KPNO to the tenant. 2) The operating organization would be required to pay an annual assessment for basic services currently called the joint-use-fee (JUF). This fee is required of all tenant facilities and is adjusted annually according to prior year and anticipated mountain operation expenditures. Basic services are beneficial to all users of the site and include, but are not limited to, snow removal, limited road maintenance, security, emergency first aid, limited fire prevention and response, routine septic system maintenance, rubbish removal, and servicing of underground high voltage power lines excluding power supplier s sub-station equipment. Basic JUF cost is based on a scientific use, square footage footprint of the facility. In fiscal year 2013, the 2.1m JUF was $13K, not including transportation or voice and data communications fees. 3) The operating organization would be responsible for operating and maintaining the building/dome and telescope, as well as maintaining all instruments, data acquisition systems and software. The operating organization may de-commission, upgrade or replace existing instrumentation; it may also upgrade or otherwise modify the telescope, control systems and building/dome in ways that are consistent with the proposed used of the telescope, subject to NSF approval. The figures shown in Appendix A are rough estimates of what it is likely to cost to operate and maintain the telescope, control systems, and building/dome full time. The organization would be responsible for providing all staff as appropriate for their proposed operation, maintenance and use of the telescope facility, including modifications and upgrades. 4) Any labor provided by NOAO (if available) to the operating organization (excluding those services covered by the joint-use-fee) would be direct-charged for actual hours worked at the hourly rate, plus an applicable NSF approved labor burden (to recoup the cost of administration and employee benefits) on the combined total. Operations and maintenance cost estimates do not include telescope operator/observer training needs, estimates for which can be provided if requested. Fully burdened labor costs in Appendix A use the current NSF-approved rates. 3

4 Appendix A: Cost Estimate for KPNO 2.1m Standalone Operation (FY13 dollars) ESTIMATED OPERATING COSTS/NEEDS (annual basis, routine operation) 1) General observatory related costs A. Utilities (best guess annual estimates from FY13) 1. Electric at $0.104/KWH $ 24, Telephone voice/data link $ 5, $ 650 Sub-total $ 30,150 B. Joint-Use Fee (JUF) (Approximate FY13 cost based on 2.1/CF scientific footprint of ~3,320 s.f.) 1. Basic Services (required) $ 13, Transportation (optional) $ 13,500 Sub-total $ 26,500 TOTAL GENERAL OBSERVATORY RELATED COSTS...$ 56,650 2) Maintenance / Support Efforts (routine and preventative) A. Routine/preventive maintenance (labor is provided by tenant) Supplies, materials, maintenance contracts $ 2,500 B. Other maintenance (telescope, building/dome, instrument & control computer) 1. Engineering support (labor is supplied by tenant) 2. Electronic / Instrument maintenance (labor is supplied by tenant) 3. Building / Dome issues (labor is supplied by tenant) 4. Custodial (labor is supplied by tenant) 5. Supplies & materials $ 5,000 C. Aluminizing Charge (primary & secondary normally done every three years) $ 5,000 Removal and reinstallation labor by tenant; listed cost is per mirror TOTAL MAINTENANCE COSTS (excluding labor)...$ 12,500 D. Maintenance / support personnel 1. Mechanical Engineer (0.5 FTE, base rate) $ 30, Electronics Technician (0.5 FTE, base rate) $ 33, General maintenance and custodial (0.5 FTE, base rate) $ 14,000 LABOR COST (fully burdened)......$ 142,450 3) Observing related cost A. Meals/lodging costs ($90/person/day) for 360 days $32,400 B. Cryogenics (est. 10 liters LN2/day x avg. $.75 per liter) $ 2,700 C. Misc. or unknown operating expenses (Including insurance) $ 5,000 TOTAL OBSERVING RELATED COSTS...$ 40,100 TOTAL ESTIMATED ANNUAL OPERATING COST (excluding labor)...$ 109,250 TOTAL ESTIMATED ANNUAL OPERATING COST (including labor)...$ 251,700 4

5 4) Potential Miscellaneous one-time costs A. Small 5 KVA UPS unit (if operations require it) $ 5,000 B. Telecommunications buy-in cost (infrastructure only) ~ $ 12,400 C. Mirror handling/collimation training costs (one time only) ~ $ 2,000 TOTAL ESTIMATED ONE TIME COSTS...$ 19,400 Appendix B: 2.1-m Telescope Information and Specifications Refer to the following optical diagram (Figure 1) for additional information. 1. The 2.1-m telescope may be operated in two configurations: a. f/7.6 R-C with a nominal focus mm behind the primary vertex b. f/15 Cassegrain using a two-axis controllable secondary with ~ 3 arcmin range. Control electronics for the f/15 secondary are included. Changing between the two configurations involves a top end change which would need to be carried out by the operator of the facility. 2. The telescope has a manual instrument rotator with encoded readout (Section A-A in the optical diagram). 3. The telescope has a guider that may be installed on the instrument rotator with a mounting pattern (Section B- B in the optical diagram). a. The nominal R-C focus is 50.4 mm behind the guider mounting surface. b. The guider includes a wide field acquisition camera, controllable mirror to direct light to the acquisition camera or science detector, and a controllable guide probe for off-axis guiding. c. The rotator/guider can accept a maximum instrument weight of 230 kg. 4. Telescope dome will automatically track telescope motion through the telescope control system (TCS). a. Normal operation to a zenith distance of 62.3 degrees b. Lower shutter may be raised to permit observing at larger zenith distances but no less than 23 degrees. 5. Existing TCS is included. This includes a viable socket for visitor instrument use. 6. There is a current operator/observer operations handbook ( 7. The following instrumentation is included: a. Filter wheel (4-inch square) with detector mount b. CCD Imager (STA2) c. Goldcam spectrograph. This instrument needs a new detector. An estimate of work required to bring into service can be provided upon request. 5

6 6

7 Optical Data Primary Mirror Radius of Curvature mm Conic Constant Mirror Diameter Clear Aperture Central Hole Central Obscuration mm mm 635 mm diameter 870 mm diameter f/7.6 Secondary Mirror f/15 Secondary Mirror Distance from Primary mm Distance from Primary mm Radius of Curvature mm Radius of Curvature mm Conic Constant Conic Constant Clear Aperture mm Clear Aperture mm Secondary to R-C Focus mm Secondary to R-C Focus mm Guider to R-C Focus 50.4 mm Effective Focal Length mm Effective Focal Length mm Plate Scale 6.46 arcsec/mm Plate Scale arcsec/mm f/15 Cone Diameter mm Effective Area m 2 Effective Area (cone) m 2 Focus Encoder 1.0 µm/unit Effective Area (no cone) m 2 Cassegrain Mechanical Data (datum = back of primary mirror cell) Component Weight (kg) Moment (kg-m) Instrument Rotator Guider Allowable Instrument 230 Total Load

8 Figure m Telescope Optical Diagram 8

9 Appendix C: Coudé Feed Telescope Information 1. Telescope The 0.9 m off-axis primary mirror is fed by a 1.5 m alt-az mounted flat mirror and produces an f/31 beam which is folded near the entrance slit by a third mirror (see Figure 2). The scale at the slit is 7.23 arcsec/mm. Coverage on the sky is essentially to the southern horizon and up to +70 degrees on the meridian with vignetting above that declination. Target acquisition and guiding is provided by an intensified CCD camera with a digital memory with error sensing sending error signals to the drive motors for the alt-az flat mirror. The guider operates directly off the stellar image on the slit. A wider field eyepiece is also available for direct viewing. A Heurikon microprocessor carries out the telescope pointing calculations while a Sparc-2 computer provides the user interface and object file utilities. It also runs a GUI for spectrograph grating wavelength centering. 2. Spectrograph a. Entrance slit: The continuously varying slit has a width from microns and decker lengths of arcsec selectable with a knob on the slit turret. A filter bolt just below the slit can hold two 2" 2" filters for grating order separation. b. Collimators: Two off-axis paraboloidal collimators are available depending on the size of the selected grating. The large collimator has a diameter of mm and the small collimator diameter is mm. The small collimator is on a horizontal slide, allowing it to be rolled out of the optical path to use the large collimator. c. Gratings: There are 2 large gratings ("A" and "B") with dimensions of approximately mm used with the large collimator, a grating of mm ("C"), and one of mm ("D"), both used with the small collimator. There is also a mm echelle grating used with the small collimator and a collection of grism cross dispersers. Gratings from the 4m RCSP can be used to provide lower resolutions. d. Cameras: Two cameras are available for mounting the CCD dewars: camera 5 is a folded Schmidt design with a focal length of cm. Slit to focal plane demagnifications are 6.3 and 9.4 with the small and large collimators, respectively. Camera 6 is a lensless Schmidt camera of cm focal length with small and large collimator demagnifications of 1.9 and 3.0. Anamorphic factors will increase the demagnification values, depending on the grating. Resolution at the CCD detector will depend on the pixel size and slit width. With 15 micron pixels the resolution can range from 0.9 A/pixel with camera 5 and RCSP grating BL400, to A/pixel with camera 6 and the echelle grating in order 96. These values correspond to resolutions of 4400 to 400,000, respectively. The latter value would be difficult to attain in practice because of the small slit width required, and a more practical resolution might be around 200,000. The online manual may be consulted to provide more details of all aspects of the spectrograph. 9

10 Figure 2: Schematic optical diagram of the feed to the Coudé Spectrograph 10